This is a story about a prophet who dared to tell the truth. At the time of this story the Jewish people were divided into 2 kingdoms. These kingdoms were Judah and Israel. Ahab was the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat was the king of Judah.
Jehoshaphat had gone to see Ahab. Ahab was complaining to Jehoshaphat that the kingdom of Syria had taken some of his land. The land in question Ramoath at Gilead. Ahab wanted Jehoshaphat to go with him to fight Syria and take back this land.
Jehoshaphat said he would go after they asked the advice from a prophet of God. Ahab was ready with 400 prophets, only these prophets were not true prophets of God. They were "yes men", that is men who said "yes" to anything the king wanted. They also took part in idol worship, so they were not doing what God wanted them to do. When these prophets were asked if they, Ahab and Jehoshaphat, would win this battle they said that they would win, but Jehoshaphat wasn't satisfied and asked Ahab if there was another prophet of God.
Ahab told him that yes there was one named Micaiah, the son of Imlah. King Ahab said, "I hate him!" he said he hated Micaiah because he never had anything good to say about him or what he wanted to do. He said that all that Micaiah had to say about him was evil. But King Jehoshaphat insisted that Ahab send for Macaiah.
The men that King Ahab had sent to get Macaiah even told Macaiah what to answer when the king asked for his advice. When he was asked Micaiah answered what he was told to answer, but he said it in a way that every one would know that he was not telling the truth. This made Ahab angry and he ask him to tell the truth. Then Machaiah answered and told them the truth. He said if they went into this battle Israel would be scattered on the hills like sheep without a shepherd.
Ahab said, "Didn't I tell you that he wouldn't prophecy anything good about me, but evil? Another one of Ahab's men got so mad that he slapped Macaiah. Then Ahab order the Macaiah be put in prison and fed only BREAD and WATER until he got back. Macaiah told Ahab that if he came back at all that what he had just told the them was not from God.
We know that Macaiah was telling the truth and what he
said was from God because he was right. What he said would happen happened.
Even though Ahab had disguised himself for the battle he was killed in
that battle.
As for Jehoshapaht? Some of the Syrian army saw Jehoshaphat
in his chariot and chased him mistaking him for Ahab. Jehoshaphat
had to yell out that he was Jehoshaphat and not Ahab or he might have been
killed, too.
Sometimes it might be hard to tell the truth but we should always tell the truth.